Smart to be made in Beijing?
China has been the savior of many a western car brand, this large and eager to buy market is snapping up anything that just isnt selling too well in the US of A. Chevrolet sales? through the roof! Buick sales, they went through the roof long ago and are nearing earth orbit now! Its no surprise then to learn that Daimler Chrysler are planning to make Smart Fourtwo in Beijing. The Smart has a few competitors in China, namely the Little Noble mini car, and certain electric cars.
The Smart is already available in Beijing as a grey market import, and it comes at import prices usually around 200,000rmb, You can get an MG7 for that price, and still walk away with 30,000rmb change.
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I don’t think it’s a good idea for Daimler-Benz to sell smarts here in china, even when this Car is beautiful, great design and amazing performance, is too fancy and too pricy for the chinese market. Not too many chinese would espend 200.000 rmb in such a small car when they can have an MG or 3 santnas for the same price. Lets face it in some places that is the down payment for an apartment so for that money you expect a car where you can sleep in.
We already have the experience with the Mini cooper, as a lot of people said to me before right here, why buy a cooper when you can have two swifts for the same price?
I agree with you on this one. Unless they can price the Smart in the under 100,000 range then I don’t think they will succeed here… Wouldn’t be a Smart idea… (pun intended).
The Smart is sold unofficially in China, Daimler dont support the sales here. They may begin production which I think should make the car around 80k RMB, which is STILL a lot of money for essentially a toy.
Chinese men wouldnt touch it with a barge pole, so its down to the women, girls, and mistresses to buy this fashionable toy.